Lee Nixon - Fine Art
Hello and
thank you for stopping by my website to see my Impressionist paintings,
drawings, and floral paintingss. I have been painting landscapes and other
subject matter for nearly 48 years. My paintings reflect a reverence for a
serene earth, and the desire to share it with you through color, pattern, and
texture. I work primarily in acrylics for their versatility and compatibility
with other media.
How
I Choose a Painting Palette
Artists
begin with a palette void of color. Thus, the first step involves choosing
colors that will represent the feelings, ideas, and passion of the artist
toward the subject matter.
I love bold
colors, especially complementary colors. Complementary colors face one another
across the color wheel as opposites. For example: red and green, blue and
orange, yellow and violet, yellow orange and blue violet, red orange and blue
green, red violet and yellow green.
Complementary
colors enhance one another when applied side by side. A cool green next to a
bright red will generate a fiery pulsating red, whereas a warm red next to a
green hue will enhance the cool, soothing effect of green.
So you can
imagine what is on my palette! On one side you will have cool colors, such as;
violets, blues and greens, whereas the opposite side will consist of warm
colors; yellow, orange, and red.
How do I put
this to practice? Often I will use a reddish hue (color) for grasses, and then
overlap it with blades of green, yellow green and blue green. A beautiful blue
spacious sky will be filled with gorgeous sun struck clouds consisting of
yellow orange, white, blue, yellow, and a touch of violet.
The law of
optics applies here. The Pocket
Dictionary of Art Terms edited by Julia M. Ehresmann, defines mixing
Optical Mixing as the involuntary mixing of juxtaposed colors by the eye. Thus
at a certain distance, juxtaposed dabs of red and yellow pigment produce the
sensation of orange. The colors seen by optical mixing appear more clear and
brilliant than those obtained by mixing pigments on a palette.(end of
definition)
One’s eye will dance before the pulsating
colors as they excite the eye. Cool colors generally recede, however if a warm
color is placed behind a cool color, it will push it forward. A cool color, on
the other hand, if it is placed in front of a warm color will attempt to push
it back, thus creating a pulsating effect. This explains why my palette is full
of bright bold colors.
How do you
choose your painting palette? There are many color arrangements such as:
analogous, complementary, split complementary, triads, warm and cool colors.
Also, one may select a monochromatic color scheme, one color plus white, black
and gray. What a selection!
I will
continue to discuss other topics in my next newsletter. Thanks for stopping by.
Lee
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